Prosecutor: Gang operated as criminal enterprise

FILE - This file photo combo shows, from left, alleged Native Mob gang members Arthur Francis Cree, William Earl Morris, and Wakinyon Wakan McArthur, right. The trial of the three members of an American Indian gang known for terrorizing people in the Upper Midwest is nearing an end after weeks of testimony in Minneapolis. In closing arguments Tuesday, a prosecutor accused the defendants of drug trafficking, attempted murder, murder and witness retaliation. (AP Photos/Minn. Dept. of Corrections &
— AP

FILE - This file photo combo shows, from left, alleged Native Mob gang members Arthur Francis Cree, William Earl Morris, and Wakinyon Wakan McArthur, right. The trial of the three members of an American Indian gang known for terrorizing people in the Upper Midwest is nearing an end after weeks of testimony in Minneapolis. In closing arguments Tuesday, a prosecutor accused the defendants of drug trafficking, attempted murder, murder and witness retaliation. (AP Photos/Minn. Dept. of Corrections &
/ AP

John Brink, Cree's attorney, said his client was innocent and the government didn't prove Cree was a gang member. He said the case was "the most chickenfeed RICO prosecution that's ever been brought," referencing the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, a federal law designed to target organized crime.

Morris' attorney, Thomas Shiah, said his client wasn't a Native Mob member and therefore couldn't be part of the alleged racketeering conspiracy. He said Morris acted on his own when he threw scalding water in one man's face and shot at another man, who was with his 5-year-old daughter at the time.

Winter, the prosecutor, said Morris carried out the shooting because "he needed a jewel to put in his crown."

Shiah alleged Native Mob insiders who testified at trial knew "zip, zero" about Morris, and that Morris did not deal drugs, have gang tattoos, or attend gang council meetings. He also alleged the trial was the government's "attempt to eradicate and eliminate a small segment of the Native American population."

And all three defense attorneys said the government's witnesses included known criminals, who lied to get a better deal.

Winter said the government makes no apologies for enforcing RICO laws, and any allusion to racism by the defense is merely an attempt to distract jurors. He also acknowledged the government did "not have angels as witnesses" but that witness testimony should be considered with all the other evidence.

The trial, which began in January, included nearly 1,000 exhibits and 180 witnesses.